Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Filters For Fiji: A Modified Cracker Box Biosand Filter For Rural Fiji, Geneva Newell, Cameron Lowrey, Thomas Burt, Lexie Caterine

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Water quality remains a major issue throughout rural Fiji, as current solutions rely on outside organizations providing money or technology. The goal of Filters for Fiji’s research was to develop a sustainable water filtration method for the people of rural Fiji, through ethnographic and biological research. In order to be sustainable, the filter had to be inexpensive (less than USD$15), simply built and maintained, and suitable for the end-user. The driving question of the research was: can a plastic, modified biosand filter be constructed from materials that could be sourced locally in rural Fijian communities? To answer this question, feedback …

Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Project, Courtney Huitt, Cormack Williams

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Offshore wind is a developing industry in the Central Coast with the advent of the future offshore wind project planned off the north coast of San Luis Obispo County. This senior design project aligns with the recently leased wind energy project as a detailed study on the structural design, geotechnical design, and construction of a single 14 MW floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) located 40 km NW of Morro Bay (NOAA buoy 46028). A preliminary design of a spar FOWT is presented in this project as a solution to the rapidly increasing water depth off the coast of Morro Bay, …

Causey Reservoir Access Project: Improving Visitor Safety And Access Now And For The Future, Michael Merrill, Carly Jo Petersen, Isaiah Norman, Jordan Jones, Nathan Chidester

Civil and Environmental Engineering

In coordination with the Central Federal Lands Highway Division, the Causey Reservoir Access Project is a multidisciplinary endeavor to address infrastructural deficiencies around Causey Reservoir. The reservoir is a high-use land- and water-based recreation site on Cache National Forest, about a half hour east of Ogden, Utah. This project addresses a deteriorating bridge, insufficient parking, and roads damaged by landslides as shown in Figure 1.

Utah Transit Authority (Uta) Frontrunner Extension – Ogden To Brigham City, Ut, Cortni Chandler, Ned Mcfarlane, Kyler Nielsen, Tyson Roper, Joshua Ward

Civil and Environmental Engineering

UTA is planning to extend the FrontRunner commuter rail line (Fig. 1) from Ogden, Utah, to Brigham City, Utah, to enhance interurban transportation in Northern Utah between Box Elder, Weber, and Davis counties. UTA asked SpotOn Engineering to perform a feasibility analysis on extending the FrontRunner commuter rail line northward and to design a possible station location for the Brigham City area.

Design Of A Concrete Canoe For The Asce Competition With Washout Improvement And Hydraulic Testing, Nick Rogers, Izzy Timms, Minjie Kim, Jodiah Andresen, Hayden Quinn, Rex Guyer, Tyson Hymas

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The concrete canoe project is put together as a response to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) issuance of a Request for Proposal (RFP) for their yearly competition. This year, the RFP expanded beyond its usual scope due to the influence of COVID-19, allowing more variability in the approach. While the requirements to design a hull, a mix design, and perform a structural analysis remained the same, the construction of the prototype was left as optional for each school. In place of the construction requirement, enhanced focus areas are implemented, letting the project have a broader scope with more …

Identification And Mitigation Of Harmful Algal Blooms In Mantua Reservoir, Jeffrey Kennedy, Timothy Place, Tyler Wallace, Steven White, Carolina Williams

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, are capable of emitting cyanotoxins which are harmful to humans and animals. Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) occur when cyanobacteria multiply to great densities. Mantua Reservoir in Box Elder County, UT, experiences seasonal HABs, which has resulted in seasonal reservoir closures.

The EnVision team investigated the cause of HABs at Mantua Reservoir by collecting samples from the reservoir’s known point sources and frequently visited recreation areas. The samples were analyzed to determine total phosphorus, nitrate, and cyanotoxin concentrations. The team concluded that excessive phosphorus loading in the reservoir is most culpable for the annual HABs …

Idaho National Laboratory Water Test Bed: Improving The Security Of Water Distribution Systems, Sadie Boyer, Caleb Child, Maren Hulse, Emma Lyon, Dalton Richins, Andrew Walker

Civil and Environmental Engineering

To protect the water supply in our nation's cities, the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) built a test facility to evaluate how pollution moves in a water system. Mitigating harmful pollutants in municipal water distribution networks is crucial for the protection of city residents.

JARVIS Engineering worked with the INL to create the plans for a proposed expansion of the current, straight-line Water Security Test Bed to better model a city block.

An expanded looping system was designed by the JARVIS team and modeled in EPANET to provide flow values for various scenarios.

Logan Pass Improvement Project: Glacier National Park, Devan Peterson, Jordan Duncan, Kyle Horton, Luke Martineau, Jake Egley, Cooper Karras

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Glacier National Park has seen drastic increases in park visitation. The number of visitors has increased from 2.3 million to 3 million visitors in the past 5 years.

The Going to the Sun Road at Logan Pass exhibits an iconic overlook of the park. The parking lot is often full before 10:00 AM and remains full the remainder of the day during peak season (See Figure 1).

The purpose of the Logan Pass Improvement Project is to enhance visitor experience at Logan Pass. This will be accomplished by reducing traffic congestion and increasing safety and accessibility while maintaining the environmental …

Providence Ridge Subdivision, Karter Issacson, Seth Robertson, Skyler Allred, Brayden Chamberlain, Cody Zohner

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Cache Valley has a housing shortage. There is prime real estate in Providence to subdivide. The State of Utah is the first fastest growing State in the United States of America (U.S. Census Bureau, 2020)*

Temple Fork Dam, Riley Manwaring, Kendall Maedgen, Taylor Kesler, Logan Thackeray, John Sumsion, Adam Pack

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Constructing a dam in Temple Fork will provide additional water storage to meet the needs of a growing population in Cache County. A roller-compacted concrete (RCC) style dam is best suited for the current conditions at Temple Fork, which will provide a total of 10,000 acre-ft of water storage.

Timpanogos Wastewater Treatment Plant, Laura Christiansen, Silas Schneider, Marissa Croft, Melanie Sullivan, Brent Jacobson, Steven Wright

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The Timpanogos Special Service District (TSSD) wants to improve their Wastewater treatment facility. They requested that the new facility accounts for the following:

• Smell coming from the drying beds.

• Future population growth in the area.

• New phosphorus limitations in the effluent set by the state of Utah.

• Treat wastewater to meet Type 1 reuse standards.

In Figure 1, the image displays the current service area for TSSD. TSSD serves 10 different cities, and currently discharges the effluent wastewater into Utah Lake. Utah Lake has problems with algal blooms. Reducing the amount of nutrients discharged into Utah …

Vadose Zone Recharge Through Shallow Hydraulic Fracturing, Daniela Barrera-Zarco, Lucila Campos, Ryan Eberhard, Brackon Rawlinson

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Effective utilization of water is an ever-increasing concern throughout the world. Finding new ways to store and effectively utilize water received from rainfall events is crucial to mitigate flooding and to recharge the Earth’s subsurface aquifers. In a growing and changing world, the need for adaptive and cost-effective solutions to water storage and utilization is critical.

Solutions Centered Engineering (SCE) set out to find an economical and environmentally friendly solution to the collection and storage of water. We were specifically searching for ways to reduce runoff and recharge water in the vadose zone. The vadose zone is below the ground …

Utah State University Parking Garage, Reed Burr, Ty Koppenhafer, Nathan Lamoreaux, Taylor Shapiro, Kaehan Shour, Nathan Williams

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Utah State University (USU) is known for its excellent engineering and agricultural programs. USU’s main campus is in Logan, UT and is Utah’s largest public residential campus.

USU’s Logan campus currently has a parking deficiency that cannot accommodate increasing parking demand each year.

• USU had a total of 17,667 students and 2,585 faculty and staff during the Fall 2019.

• Only 8,924 parking spots available to accommodate this student and staff population.

• Office of enrollment is expecting a growth of 691- 1400 more students by 2025.

• USU’s 2017 Transportation Master Plan determines a need for 414 additional …

Evaluation Of Seismic Force Provisions For Ancillary Systems In Piers And Wharves Considering Effects Of Nonlinearity, Rakesh K. Goel

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Much of the prior research on understanding seismic response of secondary systems and development of code provisions was conducted either for nuclear power plant facilities or buildings. Most marine structures differ from nuclear power plant facilities or buildings in that the marine structures can be idealized as one-story building type systems. Furthermore, most previous studies have been limited to linear elastic behavior of both primary and secondary systems.

The objectives of this study are to (1) understand effects of nonlinearity, both in primary and secondary systems, on seismic forces in secondary systems, and (2) evaluate seismic force provisions proposed in …

The Redesign And Rebuild Of The S.R. 81 Bridge, Benjamin Ashley, David Ward, Ethan Durocher, Jacob Wilding

Civil and Environmental Engineering

• The bridge crossing is on S.R. 81 which spans the Bear River

• The bridge was built initially in 1859

• The bridge was condemned in the 1990’s and in the early 2000’s was washed out

• The redesign will meet needs of community with the ability to have farm equipment cross safely

• Built to withstand the 100-year flood

• Project will address and alleviate concerns brought up from original bridge washout

Student Steel Bridge Competition, Usu Department Of Civil And Environmental Engineering

Civil and Environmental Engineering

A recreational trail, located in Katy Trail State Park, Missouri, experienced wash out due to historic floods during the spring and summer of 2019. The wash out has become a new water way that needs to be crossed by a trail for walkers, joggers, bicyclists, and equestrians. A steel bridge has been chosen by the local government to solve this problem due to its versatility, ease of prefabrication, ability for rapid erection, superior strength to weight ratio, durability, and high level of recycled content.

The local government has set basic parameters for the design of this steel bridge. These parameters …

Highway 89/91 Wildlife Crossing, Camden Gillins, Eduardo Hueramo, Ethan Schow, Carson Winger

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Highway 89/91 is a major arterial connecting Brigham City to Cache Valley through Wellsville Canyon. There are several existing underpass wildlife crossings along the route that are infrequently used by deer and other large wildlife. The Utah Division of Wildlife wishes to improve wildlife crossings in the area because the underpass crossings have some of the lowest usage rates in Utah. Due to the abundance of wildlife in Wellsville Canyon, the stretch of Highway 89/91 experiences frequent wildlife-vehicle collisions.

CE Squared Engineering presented four possible alternatives for a wildlife crossing near mile marker 8 in Wellsville Canyon. Each alternative was …

Pedestrian Bridge: Jbs Meat Processing Facility Hyrum, Ut, Daniel Cox, Wyatt Lantz, Jake Leatham, Jake Makin, Michael Rasmussen

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The JBS meat processing facility in Hyrum, UT, requested an engineering assessment and design for a safe pedestrian route from JBS’s west employee parking lot to the inside of the JBS facility. JBS employs over 1000 people many of whom park their vehicles in the company’s west employee parking lot. JBS employees currently must cross 1200 west from the west parking lot via a crosswalk with faded paint and frequent traffic traveling at speeds of 40-45 mph. The purpose of this project is to create a safer and more convenient entrance into JBS’s facility from the company’s west employee parking …

Great Western Rv Park, Jairus Anderson, Clark Brown, Brennan Rees, Ty Rees

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Royal Developments LLC has requested the development of a parcel in a rural community in Wayne County. The proposed property is located between Bicknell and Torrey alongside Highway 24. The economic growth requires a need for more capacity of overnight stay. Within the rural area, it is home to diverse scenery that attracts millions of visitors every year around the world. Royal Developments plans to develop an RV park and cabins with JCR Engineering in the Bicknell area for visitors to stay.

North Davis Sewer District Wastewater Treatment Plant Additions, Amy Carmellini, Jessica Cooper, Kailey Jorgensen, Madeline Tennant, Nikki Vause, Travis Whitfield

Civil and Environmental Engineering

North Davis Sewer District (NDSD) wastewater treatment plant must alter their treatment process to reduce total phosphorus (TP) and total inorganic nitrogen (TIN) in their effluent. NDSD treats ~19 MGD using biotowers and trickling filters then discharges final effluent to Farmington Bay (FB) of the Great Salt Lake (GSL) (Figure 1).

Alterations to NDSD’s treatment process must meet lower TIN and TP standards by year 2020 while planning for population increases through year 2050. Relocation of NDSD’s outfall from FB to Gilbert Bay (GB) would allow NDSD to meet less stringent standards.

NDSD plant operators prioritize reliability (40%), cost (30%), …

Fish Lake Recreation Area And Fishing Pier, Jesse Mott, Collin Pace, Matthew Crump, Matthew Day, Elliot Naulu

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Fish Lake, located in Fishlake National Forest, has restricted access to shoreline fishing opportunities because of an invasive weed called Eurasian Milfoil. The National Forest Service plans to address this issue by providing fishing opportunities to visitors beyond the weed line, which requires access 100 feet out from the shoreline.

In addition to providing improved fishing access, the Forest Service wants to develop the site with a parking lot, sidewalk, and restroom. The parking lot needs to accommodate at least 26 vehicles and fit in the narrow strip of land between the existing highway and Fish Lake.

San Rafael Swell Recreational Vehicle Campground Design, Emily Fica, Aaron Olney, Tyler Kendall, Paola Muñoz, Devin Shelley

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) hired Starry Night Engineering to design a campground North of exit 131 on I-70. The site is located near the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area and is open for public use. BLM is concerned about insufficient traffic regulations and harm to vegetation and other natural resources due to the recent surge of recreational use in the San Rafael Swell area. RVs and off-road vehicles are the predominate source in the area.

Figure 1 shows landscape destruction at the site due to insufficient roads and lack of traffic regulations. BLM asked Starry Night Engineering to …

Dry Canyon Well In Smithfield City, Utah, Colby Bench, Zachary Benson, Tyler Daniels, Steven Fuhr, Timothy Price, Sammie Stubbs

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The purpose of the Dry Canyon Well project is to provide an additional water supply to Smithfield City. Smithfield City anticipates a 100% increase in population over the next 40 years. To accommodate the future demand, Smithfield City hired T&S Engineers to design a well. T&S Engineers designed the chlorination system, pump house, pipeline to a nearby storage tank, and gravel road to access the well.

Garley Canyon Recreation Area, Kathryn Margetts, Kyler Olsen, Mariah Rasmussen, Caitlin Roundy, Matthew Solomon, C. Jack Tousley

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Carbon County, UT has commissioned Jones & DeMille Engineering (JDE) to design and construct a reservoir at the mouth of Garley Canyon. To attract people from around Utah to visit Garley Reservoir, JDE has partnered with Trail Blazing Development Engineering (TBD) to design an outdoor recreation area. To accommodate diversity, plans for the recreational area included a road connecting a day-use area, a traditional campground, and an RV campground. Amenities considered included access to clean drinking water, pavilions in the day-use area, and restroom facilities. TBD Engineering analyzed alternative options and designed the recreational area with the best combination of …

Box Elder Creek Trail And Bridge Design, Turky Al-Osaimi, Braiden Amata, Spencer Nielson, Michael Ruiz-Leon, Devon Vigil

Civil and Environmental Engineering

There is a light footpath that begins at Mayors pond in Brigham City and follows the Box Elder Creek north to the surrounding neighborhoods. The path is marked with faded pink utility ribbons. The footpath crosses through difficult terrain and twice through a dry creek bed. There is not a stable creek crossing. Residents seeking to use the current path are potentially exposing themselves to difficult crossings and unstable terrain.

The Brigham City Trails Task Force desires to construct a pedestrian trail for the community to safely recreate. The trail will connect residential areas to Mayors Pond. The proposed trail …

Viking Engineering Design Of Norse Code For The Usu Concrete Canoe Club, Paul Consalvo, Morgan Stewart, Josephine Bennion, Lihan Zhu, Hunter Payne

Civil and Environmental Engineering

This project provides the USU Concrete Canoe (USUCC) team a design for a concrete canoe to submit to the ASCE National Concrete Canoe Competition (NCCC). The competition requires a design provided through a technical proposal and prototype. Viking Engineering (ViE) provides canoe design, concrete mix design, technical assistance for the competition’s proposal, and prototype construction, which includes demolding. Viking Engineering proposes a Viking- themed, Shallow-Vee hull canoe design with a prototype titled Norse Code for submission.

Hobbit Caves Access Bridge: Logan, Ut, Bailey Mabey, Katrina Mccoll, Hayley Sharkey, Spencer Tanner, Allison Valencia

Civil and Environmental Engineering

The National Forest Service proposed the reconstruction of a pedestrian bridge leading to the Logan Canyon Hobbit Caves. At the proposed location the previous bridge foundation failed leading to unsafe conditions.

Currently visitors must cross the creek on foot to access the Hobbit Caves. This disrupts the local habitat. This also creates a hazard for the public due to high variance in flow rate and water level of the creek. A new location was selected and the design criteria was created based upon this new location.

Recycling Warehouse, Hunter Carter, John Jacobsen, Brady Layton, Ariel Silva, Wyatt Wray

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Valley Recycling is a recycling company located in Cache Valley. One of the main things they recycle is scrap metal that is sorted out into ferrous and nonferrous metals. The current focus is on the building that the nonferrous metals are sorted, cleaned, and processed in. The current building where this work is done does not meet the needs for the required work.

Central Valley Water Reclamation Facility: Food Waste Handling Improvements, Avery Holyoak, Todd Keniry, Benjamin Sandberg, Jade Snyder

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Central Valley Water Reclamation Facility (CVWRF), in Salt Lake City, Utah, utilizes a mesophilic anaerobic digestion system. CVWRF receives on average 52 million gallons per day (MGD) of wastewater and accepts 10,000 to 20,000 gal of liquid food waste daily. CVWRF produces energy from methane gas captured during anaerobic digestion of biosolids and food waste. The focus of this analysis is: 1) to optimize the performance of the anaerobic digestion system, 2) to evaluate the potential to increase the volume of food waste CVWRF accepts.

Flood Conveyance And Restoration Upper Reach Of The Logan River, Dani Delahoz, Briana Kistler, Dallen Webster, D. Willey

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Generations of residents in Logan, Utah have sought riverside property along the Logan River, leading to crowded development within the river’s natural floodplains. This is especially true in the Upper Reach, a 1.3-mile section between First Dam and Crockett Diversion (Figure 1).

Housing and yard development at the edge of the river has confined the water to a narrow, steeply-banked channel, increasing velocity, sediment scour, and degradation of river and riparian habitat. During extreme flow events, like the 100-year 24-hour flood, the river overtops its banks and flows into adjacent properties. Dam-induced sediment deficiencies and high velocities have led to …